Tourists visiting Tower Bridge can see a unique view of the bridge mechanism and road below – through two new glass walkway floors 42 metres above the River Thames. GLASSOLUTIONS’ experience and technical expertise helped them to win the £250,000 contract to design and manufacture the (one-way) glass, which has been inserted into the floor of each of the two 11.5 metre long walkways on the Grade 1 listed building. The existing floors were removed and a steel frame was installed into which the new 80mm thick glass floor panels, comprising seven layers of glass capable of withstanding the weight of six elephants, were inserted. The glass specification was developed to accommodate major external forces such as wind loading and the potential impact should a passing vessel strike the walkways. Equally important though was consideration of internal impacts on the glass floors and how to design-in a way to easily repair any damage that results from the heavy footfall of 600,000+ visitors a year. The solution developed by GLASSOLUTIONS was to incorporate a top “sacrificial” layer of glass into the panels. This can be replaced quickly and easily should any damage occur – including the minor scratches and scuff marks that are inevitable over time – without affecting the structural integrity of the floor. With a wide variety of events and functions held on the walkways, another dimension to the glass panel design was to maintain privacy for venue users when necessary to prevent prying eyes from the passing traffic and pedestrians on the bridge below. The clever panel design allows for this too, which means GLASSOLUTIONS can replace the top layer of glass at any point to incorporate a privacy feature – and remove just as easily. Chris Earlie, business manager at Tower Bridge said “There has never been anything as big as this for Tower Bridge in terms of development, and in terms of future-proofing in the exhibition. We are really confident with the solution that GLASSOLUTIONS presented and we’re really happy with the outcome. On the basis of this project, I would have nothing but glowing reports on GLASSOLUTIONS. I would definitely, definitely recommend them.”
